Tom Selleck interview: talks Indiana Jones role

from an interview September 30, 2010 with Collider


What did you think Magnum was going to be when it started?

Tom: Thirteen paychecks. We were picked up, and that was the best thing that ever happened. I didn’t know past that. It almost didn’t go because CBS got in a fight with Universal. Universal said, “We’re not shooting it in Hawaii,” and CBS said, “We bought a show for Hawaii.” It was off the schedule after it sold, so it was a bit of a roller-coaster for awhile. Then, I went over there to start it and the Screen Actors Guild went on strike. I was stuck with a rent I couldn’t afford and worked for my landlady for seven bucks and hour, so I didn’t have to give up my security deposit until the show actually started.

Is that when you almost got the Indiana Jones role?

Tom: Yeah, I couldn’t do it. Bob Daly wouldn’t let me do it. I got offered Indiana Jones, after I did the pilot. While it turned out I could’ve done both, CBS said, “No, we’ve got a contract.”

Was that disappointing?

Tom: Yeah.

More disappointing when you saw the box office?

Tom: No. Steven [Spielberg] and George [Lucas] let me read the script. Up until then, I was pretty philosophic because I thought Magnum was probably going to sell and I told them that. They said, “We’re not worried about that. We’ve got cards to play with the network.” I screen-tested without seeing the script, and they let me go into an office when they made me the offer, so that I could read the script. I went, “Oh, my God!” because it was all there. It was on paper. They held out the offer for about a month. Harrison gets sick of this because he’s indelible. He’s Indiana Jones. It’s just an interesting story and I’m proud that I didn’t drive my car into a wall. I lived up to my contract and things didn’t work out so badly.